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The seedings at the USTA Boys 18 National Clay Court Championships in Delray Beach, Florida lived up to expectation with No. 1 Leighton Allen of Austin, Texas squaring off against No. 2 Logan Zapp of Fleming Island, Florida, but spectators weren’t expecting the titanic battle that ensued.

Singles Champion Leighton Allen

Allen emerged victorious to secure his first gold ball in singles with a 6-4, 6-7(4), 7-6(2) win over Zapp. It was Allen’s first Super National as a No. 1 seed, where he entered in less-than-ideal circumstances.

“The Saturday before the tournament, I sprained my left ankle during my practice session pretty badly and I was just hoping that I could heal it in time to play,” he said.

Powering through the injury, Allen said he had to put even more intent on every shot on top of being everyone’s target as the No. 1 seed.

“Being the No. 1 seed was rewarding, but it did add a little bit more pressure because I knew that everyone would try to play their absolute best tennis against me,” he said.